On April 21, over 51% of Virginia voters said “Yes” to a referendum to a mid-decade redrawing of congressional districts to counteract Trump-directed gerrymandering in other states. It began with Texas, and the order was followed in Utah, Missouri and North Carolina.
At the time of publishing, Virginia and California are the only states to approve new maps democratically. Republican governors won’t let the mere pesky will of the people (or typically beloved “states’ rights”) get in the way of following President Trump’s marching orders. Though a low-level Virginia court ruled against it, election results are expected to be upheld by the state Supreme Court.
To be clear, we’re awaiting a decision about whether the will of the people will be upheld. No one gave Youngkin a hard time when he won by an even slimmer margin in 2021. This has become par for the course in the MAGA era. When the people decide to decrease Trump’s power, we have to hear golf-loving Trump and his henchman yell “Fore!”.
Virginians who voted “no” on the ballot measure are complaining that a 51-48 vote shouldn’t result in a 10-1 map, as well as sharing the map to show all the low population counties that voted “no”. MAGA continues to struggle with the notion that humans vote and land does not. It seems to be a holdover from their support of the Electoral College, so presidential elections “won’t be left up to cities”. They’re close to blatantly proposing the Three-Fifths Compromise.
While this is being settled in the state’s highest court, MAGA as a national movement is also focusing on another fidget spinner: birthright citizenship.
They insist that the Fourteenth Amendment should only apply to (descendants of) slaves. Between this and a thirst for denaturalization (though there was no call for denaturalization after Winsome Earle-Sears’ failed gubernatorial campaign). MAGA’s chief priorities seem to be less about getting anything for themselves and more about merely making sure others suffer, too.
No, lower egg prices in exchange for tariffs and more expensive gas is not a win.
Republican denial in Virginia usually centers on one scapegoat: Northern Virginia. For years, GOP voters in Virginia have blamed their losing streak almost exclusively on the “blue wave” in Fairfax and Northern Virginia. But this narrative ignores a geographic reality. It seems that they’ve overlooked all the maps.
Central Virginia hubs such as Richmond and Charlottesville reliably vote blue. The coastal southeast, MAGA’s biggest blind spot, has even followed the same voting trend. Even the traditional outliers, Virginia Beach and Chesapeake, and the other five cities in the 757 area code have all voted firmly blue all the way down to the municipal level. In fact, since 2020, Chesapeake and Virginia Beach have voted Democratic for president.
That’s right- they went from Trump 2016 to Kamala 2024.
That shift isn’t an anomaly; it’s the culmination of a long-standing trend. Since Barack Obama’s first win in 2008, the state has voted blue in every presidential cycle. The November 2025 elections only hammered this point home, as Republicans lost 13 seats in the state legislature, seven of which were “safe” for forty years.
When districts that were “safe” for forty years start flipping overnight, it’s more than a “wave.” It’s a permanent change in the tide. Voters aren’t just moving left; they’re moving on.
The old Virginia way is just that- old.
